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PurposeThe purpose of the research and paper is to ensure that the views of incumbent directors are not ignored. This is against a background of baying for reform from the media, politicians and badly burned investors following the wave of corporate scandals.Design/methodology/approachThis research was conducted by members of the Board practice of Boyden global executive search. It comprised focus groups of incumbent directors in the USA and Australia as well as interviews in these countries and in the UK.FindingsDirectors had been holding back. They felt that new regulations and restrictions would have major impacts. There is the danger that over‐regulation in the developed world will merely drive even more business and jobs offshore to more loosely governed economies in the Far East.Research limitations/implicationsThe research sought the point of view of incumbent directors. One needs to consider that their comments and feedback might be self‐serving. The number of countries included was limited, though they include those to the fore in governance debate and thinking.Practical implicationsRegulations need to have the flexibility to be altered relatively easily lest they have deleterious effects. Those involved in Board recruitment, especially nomination committees need to be alert to the dangers of new regulation explained here.Originality/valueThis paper adds a different and relatively unheard viewpoint to the current public debate and regulatory climate. It sounds important words of caution to those whose knee‐jerk reaction is that tough new regulation and lots of it must be introduced immediately.

Researchers have increasingly focused on how social determinants of health (SDH) influence health outcomes and disparities. They have also explored strategies for raising public awareness and mobilizing support for policies to address SDH, with particular attention to narrative and image-based information. These efforts will need to overcome low public awareness and concern about SDH; few organized campaigns; and limited descriptions of existing message content. To begin addressing these challenges, we analyzed characteristics of 58 narratives and 135 visual images disseminated by two national SDH awareness initiatives: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Commission to Build a Healthier America and the PBS-produced documentary film Unnatural Causes. Certain types of SDH, including income/wealth and one's home and workplace environment, were emphasized more heavily than others. Solutions for addressing SDH often involved combinations of self-driven motivation (such as changes in personal health behaviors) along with externally-driven factors such as government policy related to urban revitilization. Images, especially graphs and charts, drew connections among SDH, health outcomes, and other variables, such as the relationship between mother's education and infant mortality as well as the link between heart disease and education levels within communities. We discuss implications of these findings for raising awareness of SDH and health disparities in the US through narrative and visual means.